There is no denying that spring is the most wonderful time of the year. As flowers bloom and trees sprout with life, the spring season reminds us that there is no better time to hit the reset button on our eMarketing communications and list management efforts. 

Attorneys have an obligation to communicate with their clients and provide them with relevant information on legislative, regulatory or other changes that may affect them or their business. They can also share relevant and useful information and other thought leadership with their contacts and prospects to help establish themselves as thought leaders within their respective practices. But, research shows that more than 30% of data degrades each year as people get hired, fired, quit, move, or transition back to fully in-person.

That is why it is so important for law firms and attorneys to effectively manage their eMarketing lists and to have clean and up-to-date data on their contacts and prospects so they receive the information they need but are not oversaturated with unnecessary or irrelevant content.

To help improve eMarketing list management processes and procedures, here are five tips and best practices we recommend to our clients:

1. Practice/Industry Alignment

When segmenting your eMarketing lists, it can be a good idea to create lists that align with the firm’s key areas of practice and industries. In turn, this should align with the client’s needs and interests. This will make it easier to decide which lists to use during marketing communications or event invitations.

2. Communicate and Report

To keep the importance of list management at the top of end users’ minds, legal marketers should regularly remind lawyers and their assistants to add contacts to lists. This can also be accomplished by circulating analytics and bounce reports by industry list or individual lawyers list. Circulating reports can shine a light on the benefits and importance of actively using the technology to maintain lists while driving adoption and buy-in.

3. Laterals

The marketing department is frequently involved in the onboarding of lateral partners, and the CRM can play a significant role in this process. As they transition into their role, laterals should take the time to review their contacts to decide which ones will be added to the CRM system and which ones should be notified of their new position and role. During this process, it can be a good idea to ask the lateral partner to add their contacts to lists. Having a numbered list system can make this process more efficient. 

4. Automation

When a new client is added to your CRM, it is best to have a “Welcome” email sent to them that has a link leading to a consent/preference form. Many firms are utilizing some advanced features of CRM and email marketing systems and are automating this process. Depending on the configuration of the systems in place, firms can automate the welcome process, and can even automatically segment contacts as they flow in based on certain criteria like industry, company name or job title.

5. List Reviews

Many lawyers hate reviewing their mailing lists, especially when they are out-of-date. It is best to limit these requests to only the most important events or communications and streamline the process to make it as easy as possible. 

To maintain the data quality of the lists in between important events and communications, it can be best to have dedicated data stewards maintain the integrity of the lists so firms are blindsided by the amount of dirty data they will eventually have to go through. Additionally, if your firm has an Enterprise Relationship Management (ERM) system, you can use relationship strength data to highlight each lawyer’s most important contacts to minimize review time.

Effective management of your eMarketing lists can be very challenging, but with the proper processes and procedures in place, your email communications and marketing campaigns will be more effective – and your attorney frustration will decrease, which is worth the extra effort.